At the Top
by roses and hello
Summary: Commencing Operation Get Scorpius a Girlfriend (because frankly he needs all the help he can get). Blackmail is an ugly business, but it's the only way Scorpius will be able to persuade Rose to pretend to date him in order to make his last girlfriend jealous. It's a fool-proof plan! (... isn't it?)
1. Breaking Point

First try at a Scorpius/Rose multi-chapter; let's see how it goes!

* * *

><p>"Weasley," Scorpius began, in earnest (though rather hushed) tones. "There's a new Ministry decree. They've been forced to reintroduce arranged marriages, for anybody still unmarried. Weasley, you're the only hope for a wretch like me. Without you, they'll put my family in Azkaban. My mother - her health is failing. She won't survive a month there. Will you marry me?"<p>

Rose turned over the page in her book.

"Weasley?" He waited for a moment, before assuming the same pleading expression. He even clasped his hands for effect, and then wondered if this was too far. "Not even for my desperately ill mother?"

"Your mother seemed in perfectly good health when she sent you that Howler last week," Rose said absently.

Scorpius almost grinned, but suppressed the expression in time. "Howlers can be deceiving. C'mon. Please? It's a bona-fide Ministry decree. Without me, you'll probably end up with some part-troll like Warrington over there."

Finally, Rose looked up from her reading. "Which one is Warrington?"

Surprised, Scorpius pointed the offender out. He was actually astonished that Warrington knew where the library was, even after six years, but on the other hand, maybe Scorpius was giving the guy too much credit. Maybe Warrington was lost on the way to Transfiguration or something.

"Okay," Rose said, considering. Scorpius's triumphant smile halted when she continued, "I like the look of him. I'll marry Warrington."

"You - wait, what? Warrington? No, Weasley, he's the one near the window."

"Yes. The one not inventing scenarios to keep me from reading. Now, bugger off, Malfoy."

Scorpius was about to continue arguing with her, when a hand landed on the back of his seat, tilting it backwards. He flailed briefly, grabbing the desk top with both hands.

"You heard the lady," Albus said quietly, trying not to attract the librarian's attention. She wasn't a fan of Albus; apparently his father used to write in books. Trust Madame Pince to maintain a petty grudge against the war hero Harry Potter. "C'mon, Scor. Quidditch pitch is free. Let's get out of this place. All these books are going to bring me out in a rash. No offence, Rose."

Well, Scorpius never needed to be told twice. He ruffled Rose's hair, and left her to it, taking care to scatter her work in the process.

"You get your Charms homework done?" Albus asked, swinging his bag so it knocked into Scorpius.

Scorpius glanced back at the redhead bent over her books. He snorted when he realised her papers were back in order but her hair was still in disarray. Weasley's priorities weren't exactly your average teenage girl's priorities. "Something like that. Just let me grab my broom, and I'll meet you down there."

Albus scoffed. "Right, after you waste half an hour of decent light so you can fiddle with that excuse for hair you have. I already got your broom." He waggled his eyebrows at Scorpius, seeing the incredulous look on his friend's face. "We Potters have ways and means of getting what we want."

Which meant Lily had been through his stuff again. Great. He just hoped that she hadn't transferred his boxers to the first year girls' bedroom - that had been embarrassing enough the first time. Or turned his robes pink. She wasn't the most subtle Slytherin he had ever encountered.

Sure enough, Albus's sister was leaning against the Quidditch stands, three brooms by her side, already dressed in her Quidditch gear. "Sorry, Malfoy," she said, not sounding at all apologetic. "I couldn't find your training stuff anywhere. I borrowed Bulstrode's; they'll probably fit."

"Barnaby's?" he asked, though he didn't know why he bothered when he knew they wouldn't be. He knew his training gear had been piled neatly at the top of his trunk. Merlin knew where it was now.

"Lucretia's." She threw them at him, though since he made no effort to catch them, they hit his chest and fell to the ground. "She got pretty excited by the idea, actually. She'll probably never wash them again after this. Although..." Lily peered down at the bundle at Scorpius's feet. "If I'm honest, I'm not sure how often she washed them to begin with."

Albus was making no effort to hide his snickering. Scorpius spared him a scornful glance. "Thanks, Potter. I think I'll just fly in my school robes."

Lily shrugged in a suit-yourself manner, and took off on her broom.

"Why are you the only bearable one in your family?" Scorpius grumbled to Albus, safe to comment now Lily was out of earshot. He reached for his own broom, grateful that at least Lily had relented on that front, although the reprieve was probably solely because they were on the same Quidditch team.

Albus looked amused, probably remembering the first year or so of school, before the two of them had put aside their house differences and bonded during Potions over an appreciation of the more outlandish Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. It was true Scorpius hadn't been able to stand Albus either back then. Every friendship had to start somewhere. "Am I the only one? Why is it that half the time when I'm trying to find you, you seem to be with Rose? Especially when you have a girlfriend. Who is not, in case you weren't aware, Rose."

Scorpius grinned. "Aw, Al. Firstly, you're exaggerating. Secondly, I can't help it. She's so easy - to wind up," he added hastily, noting Albus's unimpressed expression. "Easy to wind up. April gets it, anyway. She doesn't mind."

"Whatever," Albus said, not looking convinced. "I didn't get you out here just to chat about your weird fixation with my cousin. Let's get going, or it'll be too dark to fly."

* * *

><p>It was a good flying session, and Scorpius was happy in an extremely tired sort of way when he and Lily headed back to their common room together. He liked flying with Albus, even if it did get him in trouble with his team-mates from time to time, for practising with the 'enemy'. Lily never seemed to come in for the same criticisms, though maybe it was because as Chaser, she didn't have much to do with the Seekers. Or maybe they were scared of her. Scorpius couldn't blame them if they were.<p>

(Scorpius's father had smirked when Scorpius had told him that Albus and Scorpius would be opposing Seekers for Gryffindor and Slytherin respectively, and called it history repeating itself. He ceased saying that after the two became friends, and looked mildly disgusted instead whenever the subject was broached)

"Any chance you want to let me know what you've done to my dormitory this time?" It was worth enquiring, Scorpius figured. At least she would know he was onto her.

Lily grinned up at him, and Scorpius could kind of see why the lower years (and some of his year) were mad for this girl. "Absolutely nothing," she answered sweetly. "Darling Scorpius, you know I would never want to cause you any pain or discomfort."

Scorpius stopped in his tracks. That was new.

"Do I?" he asked cautiously, folding his arms across his chest. "Because from where I'm standing, that seems to be your M.O."

Lily batted her eyes at him, and took a step closer. Instinctively, he took a step back. "Oh, _Scorpius_. You've got me all wrong." She reached up, and - and put her arms around him.

Scorpius tensed. "What are you doing?"

"Just giving you a hug," Lily said, not letting go. If anything, her arms tightened around him. This must be what being hugged by the Giant Squid would be like, albeit less slimy. "Enjoy it. It's happening."

It was impossible to relax when he couldn't shake the feeling that Lily was up to something. Nevertheless, it was apparent she wasn't going to let go on her own, so he uncrossed his arms (with some difficulty), intending to untangle her.

"Malfoy!"

He knew that voice. He winced, and Lily slipped away. "Oops," she said, winking at him as she left.

"Lily _Potter_?" April spluttered.

"We were just flying together," Scorpius said tiredly. He should have guessed Lily had something like this planned.

"Oh, I see," April sneered at him, showing none of her usual composure. Scorpius wondered if there was time to get her into a private classroom before the fight erupted, or whether he had to let it unfold here in the corridor. He glanced up at her face, and quailed. On second thoughts, the corridor would be fine. "How convenient - just flying with Lily effing Potter when you and I had study arrangements." He started; he had forgotten all about it. "Oh, _now_ you remember your girlfriend. Seems like you didn't earlier, when you were studying with _Rose effing Weasley_."

Scorpius held his hands up in surrender, hoping to placate her. "Okay, April, I'm sorry. Today slipped my mind - Albus asked me to go flying - yes, yes, Albus effing Potter, I know. I'll make it up to you."

Her face wavered. They had been on and off for the best part of three years, and Scorpius knew that he had a lot of grovelling in his future. Then, she shook her head. "Scorpius, no. I think we're done this time. My OWLs are this year; I need to be studying, not chasing around the castle finding out which girl you've been spending all your time with now. Not everyone has your memory, and ability to listen without taking notes. And you still don't want to make me a priority."

"I-"

She cut across him again. "No. I'm sorry, Scorpius. You just don't know how to be a good boyfriend, and I can't deal with it right now. We're through."

* * *

><p>"'We're through'? That's it?"<p>

Scorpius sighed. It was the third time Barnaby had repeated April's parting words. Scorpius hadn't really liked them from April the first time. If you asked Scorpius, Slytherins like Barnaby were why he spent so much time with the Potters. The younger Potters; all the Barnabys in the world couldn't induce Scorpius to spend time with James Potter. Time with Lily Potter was really non-negotiable, it seemed. "That's right."

"You should dump her, then."

It was tempting to fling his forkful of egg in Barnaby's direction, but Scorpius opted to eat it instead. "Too late. She already dumped _me_."

"Well, get her back, and _then_ dump her." Barnaby shrugged, returning to his cereal. Clearly, he was no longer even half-listening. Not that he'd been any help to begin with.

"It's not a bad idea," Francis Nott mused, on his other side. Scorpius blinked at him; Nott was usually more sensible than this. "You've done this whole split up charade before. Just pick a girl, date her, be nice to her so that April knows you know how to be a 'nice boyfriend'-" Sarcasm dripped from the latter two words "-and take up with April again when she starts looking for a distraction from studying. Knowing her, that'll probably happen next week."

Scorpius rubbed his chin, looking down the table at April. She was chatting away with her friends, but he could tell that she was sneaking looks down the table at him, too. "Seems I've got nothing to lose. Which girl do you think I should pick?"

Francis shook his head, waving his toast in Scorpius's face. "Oh, no. I literally couldn't care less about all your rubbish. I just don't want to be stuck listening to the same refrain every day at breakfast this week. You leave me out of this."

Which was how Scorpius found himself pouring out the problem to Albus in an empty Charms classroom during their free period before lunch. He was sitting on the edge of his desk, swinging his legs. Did he want April back, or was it best to cut his losses? He supposed that was something he could figure out later, if Nott's plan worked. "Do you think it's a good idea?"

Albus shrugged. "I dunno, mate. Seems to me that if she doesn't want to be with you, you should take no for an answer, rather than involving some poor other girl. I mean, it's not likely because it's _you_, but what if the other girl falls in love with you? What are you going to do then?"

Scorpius tried very hard not to roll his eyes, leaning back onto his elbows. This was the culmination of asking Gryffindors for advice. How he wished that Albus were a Slytherin. None of his other friends were troubled by morals.

"But," Albus added suddenly, and the light in his eyes made Scorpius sit up. "I guess I _could_ back your plan if the girl knew all about it - and wasn't someone who would fall for you anyway."

"I am _not_ going to date your sister," Scorpius said with a shudder. Lily was going to drive him into an early grave as it was; he didn't need to accelerate the process by dating her.

Albus spluttered, and it took a moment before Scorpius realised he was laughing. "Merlin, no. Not Lily. You couldn't handle her - you _can't_ handle her as it is, let's face it. She would never do it anyway. No, I'm talking about Rose. Now, hear me out. You said that April was jealous of you spending time with Rose. She'd be perfect for it. Look, I'd really like you guys to get along. I don't want to have to keep dividing my time between you because I'm worried one of you will bite the other's head off. If you put a little effort in, I think you'd be surprised. And she's more book- than boy-orientated, so we don't have to worry about her falling in love with you." Albus glanced at Scorpius. "But Rose has more sense than that anyway."

"What makes you think Rose would be any more likely to do it than Lily?" Scorpius asked reluctantly. Much as he liked to believe in his own abilities, it did seem a bit of a leap that he'd be able to win Rose around. Not when he couldn't persuade her in fictional life-or-death scenarios. Albus was right, though - April wouldn't like it if he started 'dating' Rose. Although, Scorpius wasn't sure quite how much he was going to like it, either.

"Leave Rose to me," Albus answered, leaning back in his chair. "Did you finish that Defence essay yet? I've still got another foot or so to go on mine."

"You can copy mine," Scorpius said magnanimously. "Can I borrow your Care of Magical Creatures notes?"

Albus frowned at him. "What? You never ask to borrow my notes. You told me I write like a chicken."

"You _do_ write like a chicken. I still need your notes. C'mon. Essay for notes."

"Right now, it's sounding more like essay for notes _and my cousin_," Albus pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm going to need a little more incentive."

Scorpius wondered how he could prevent Albus from hanging around his little sister. It seemed she was having too much influence over him. Perhaps it wouldn't be so good if Albus were a Slytherin after all. "Actually, it's more like goodwill, Rose and I getting along, _and_ essay versus notes and a word in your cousin's ear." He ticked the points off on his fingers. "Three against two. Seems like the scales are unbalanced, so I'm also going to need you to throw the next Quidditch game."

Albus snorted. "Okay, sure. Did you want me to just hand you the Cup, too?"

"Fine, don't throw the game, then. I'll be getting that Cup either way," Scorpius declared. "Right. I'll get my essay, you get your chicken scratchings and your cousin. Meet you in the library by the bookworm."

"Be nice, Scorpius," Albus said warningly, getting to his feet. "You know I'll set my sister on you if you're not nice."

"When am I not - okay, okay. I get it. I'll meet you by Weas- I mean, _Rose's_ desk."

Albus rolled his eyes. "Scor, I'll need you to give me a good foundation before I talk to Rose. If you can't be civil to her for an hour, I doubt she's going to go for it no matter what I say to her. And you need to remember that my cousin is very special to me, so you mess her around, and you answer to me."

Scorpius was inclined to laugh at that, but something in the set of Albus's jaw quelled the notion. Probably something connected with the fact that Albus's family was full of heroes (plus Hogwarts was full of Albus's family), and that Scorpius came from a long line of cowards. In keeping with proud Malfoy tradition, he merely agreed.

"Then we're settled. I give you Rose - er, so long as she is willing - and you give me your Charms notes for the rest of the year."

Scorpius really did laugh, then. "You drive a hard bargain, Potter. Rest of the term."

"Good enough," Albus said, and winked, the solemn expression of a few minutes ago gone. "Commencing Operation Get Scorpius a Girlfriend."

"You can't call it that," Scorpius protested.

Albus grinned, swinging his bag and managing to whack Scorpius with it again. "Oh, don't worry. That's only the short title. The full version is 'Operation Get Scorpius a Girlfriend (because frankly he needs all the help he can get)'."

He scarpered before Scorpius had a chance to thump him.


	2. It's Celestina Warbeck's fault, really

Thank you for the fab comments/favourites/etc! Your support is much appreciated. I'm glad the first chapter went down well. These chapters will alternate between Rose and Scorpius's perspectives.

Thanks (as always!) to Lisa - my beta/sounding board/long-suffering friend.

* * *

><p>"Do you mind if I have this seat?"<p>

"It's not my seat," Rose answered, making a note of the properties of a Draught of Living Death. "I imagine Madame Pince will have something to say if you turn one of the library chairs into a Malfoy throne, though."

Roxanne sniggered, setting down her quill in anticipation of a Malfoy-Weasley battle. Rose ignored her, hoping that Scorpius would take the hint and leave. She didn't want the distraction today - and she really, really didn't want her library privileges suspended. It had happened often enough previously.

"Sure, Scor," Albus said enthusiastically from Rose's other side. "I don't suppose you'd let me borrow your Defence essay? Rose is hoarding hers."

"You'll never learn otherwise," Rose said absently, unaware that her cousins were miming alongside her as she spoke. "Roxanne, do you know what-"

Roxanne laid a hand on Rose's arm. "Oh, Rosie. I could tell you, but how would you ever learn?"

"The time is?" Rose finished, glaring at her cousin.

"Quarter past twelve," Scorpius supplied helpfully, sliding into the spare seat. "Here, Al, I've got the essay on me. You wouldn't happen to have your Care of Magical Creatures notes on you, would you?"

Roxanne was looking from Scorpius to Albus with narrowed eyes. "You're being weird," she accused. Albus passed his notes across silently, darting a look at Rose. The latter had immersed herself in her work once more, however.

Time progressed as Rose had planned; quietly, until Roxanne left her seat in search of a book. Immediately, or so it seemed, the space was filled by Scorpius. Who had, apparently, taken it upon himself to read her essay over her shoulder. "Are you sure you should be referencing Chalmers there?" he whispered, pointing at her parchment. "I think Professor Tomkins is more partial to Malone's theories of potion making."

"Professor Tomkins is wrong," Rose snapped out, forgetting to lower her voice. Albus shushed her, and she scowled at him, but continued in a softer tone. "I won't compromise my essay for his preferences."

"Well, excuse me for trying to help. Didn't know that you liked getting Es in Potions," Scorpius hissed back.

Rose reeled momentarily - she _had_ received an E for her last Potions essay, but how could Scorpius have known that? "There's nothing wrong with Es," she ground out, doing serious damage to the nib of her quill as she pressed it into the parchment. He was probably right about Malone over Chalmers. How could she change it without conceding the point?

"Whatever you say," Scorpius answered airily. "I really couldn't comment - I'm used to Os myself."

Briefly, Rose envisioned what it would be like to hurl her inkwell at Scorpius. She must have spent too long thinking about the ink splattering over his fair hair; he was giving her a confused look. She felt her face heat up, and returned to her work again. Except now Chalmers's name was taunting her on the page. Would it be the difference between an O and an E? Maybe she should go to talk to Professor Tomkins, but he was never very receptive to Rose's attempts to discuss additional reading material with him.

"You know I'm right," Scorpius murmured smugly in her ear. She did her best not to squirm, finding his breath ticklish.

Instead, she chose to elbow him in the stomach.

He doubled over, groaning in pain, and at that same moment, Roxanne arrived back, and tipped him out of her seat. Unfortunately, he landed on the floor with a thud, which brought Madame Pince.

"Right," she said, eyes glittering. "You again. Fighting _again_. My library is not a duelling club, young Weasleys. The four of you are banned until further notice."

Rose's eyes rounded. "He fell out of his chair!" she exclaimed, pointing at Scorpius. Roxanne's hands (which had been holding the back of said chair) flew behind her back, as though that made the scenario less incriminating. "We were just debating the finer points of-"

"Out," Madame Pince instructed, in a tone that brooked no discussion. "Now."

Dejectedly, Rose picked up her books and began cramming them in her bag. She would have to explain to her mother _again_ how she had managed to get banned from the library _again_. Fortunately, there was a Hogsmeade weekend coming up, and she could use her time browsing in the bookshop there. Maybe her father would bring some of her mother's books up, so she wouldn't fall behind in her extra reading. Uncle Neville would probably give her written permission to take books out of the library, if she knew the books she wanted ahead of time. He'd done it before, after all.

"Al, I'm sorry," Scorpius said, the moment that the group were outside the library.

That made Rose feel wretched - Albus was only guilty by association. "Oh, Al. Do you want any help with your work? I guess we'll have to set up another study group."

Albus shrugged. "She just wanted an excuse to ban me," he replied, looking unconcerned. "Scor and I were, er, passing the Charms classroom earlier, and it looked pretty empty - we could go in there now."

Rose and Roxanne shared a look. It was obvious that Albus meant the four of them, but neither of the girls wanted Scorpius included.

"Oh, come on," Albus said. "You elbowed him in the stomach, tipped him out of his seat-"

"My seat," Roxanne corrected.

"And got him banned from the library indefinitely. Scor, I'm sorry for introducing you to ruffians like these two."

Rose experienced a mild pang of guilt. "I'm sorry, Malfoy."

He grinned at her, and the guilt shrank to nothing. "That's okay, Weasley. I know you girls find it hard to keep your hands off me."

Unfortunately, Albus held her back, before the thought of slapping him had so much as crossed her mind. Scorpius's grin widened, and she struggled. "Get _off_ me, Albus Severus," she snapped.

"Roxy, Scor, why don't you head on and start studying?" Albus suggested calmly. He did not, to her chagrin, release Rose. The two glanced at her, and then glanced at each other much less enthusiastically, before heading off down the corridor to the Charms classroom. Once they were a fair distance away, Albus relinquished his hold.

She rubbed her arms, though they didn't really hurt. What hurt more was the fact that her cousin had thought her capable of attacking Scorpius - it was hardly her fault if he provoked her!

"Say, Rose," Albus began, collecting both their schoolbags from the floor. She fixed him with a sharp look; Albus was terrible at feigning a casual air. This reeked of - well, something, anyway. There was definitely _something_ rotten in the state of Hogwarts. "What do you think of Scorpius?"

Was this a trick? "I do _not_ have a problem keeping my hands off Malfoy!" she exclaimed.

Albus had trouble hiding his grin. He started ambling away from the library, in the direction Roxanne and Scorpius had gone. "That's not really what I mean. Well, I guess it is. Would you date him?"

Had the world gone mad, or was it just Albus? Rose gaped at him. "Al, I can promise you that I will _never_ date Scorpius Malfoy. He's rude, he's obnoxious, he just got me banned from the library _again_-"

"Actually, you were the one who got him banned this time," Albus reminded her helpfully. They came to a stop by an alcove, and he leaned against the wall there. "He's clever, you know. Probably almost as clever as you."

Rose made a dismissive noise. "Malfoy is so lazy that it cancels out any brains he might have. I swear I haven't seen him make notes in class for two years. It's a wonder he passed his OWLs. Get to the point, Albus. I think I need to entirely review the argument I put forward in my Potions essay." Okay, okay, that was because of the point Malfoy himself had made. That didn't prove anything.

"Would you date Scorpius if I asked you to?"

Rose raised her eyebrows, the Potions essay driven out of her mind. "Now why would you be asking me to do something like that?"

Albus poured out some absolute nonsense about Scorpius's girlfriend breaking up with him (good for her) and Scorpius wanting to get her back. That, apparently, was where Rose came in.

"The castle is full of gullible girls who might fall for your scheme," Rose said dryly. "It sounds like Scorpius's girlfriend doesn't like you any more than she likes me. Why don't you pretend to be his boyfriend? I'd say it's got as good a chance of working as anything. At least you actually like each other."

"The point is not getting Scorpius's girlfriend back," Albus answered. "I couldn't care less whether she dates him or not. I want you to spend time with him. Don't pull that face, Rosie. I really, really think that if you guys just spent some time together, you'd get along. And then we could all hang out. Please? For me? He's willing. You know, he likes you - if only you'd give him a chance."

Albus's pleading eyes were almost enough to convince her. Almost. But it was _Malfoy_. "Al," Rose groaned. "It's too much. I can't. I can't even sit at the same table as him without something awful happening."

"I didn't want to have to do this, Rose." Albus took in a deep breath. "You know Nana's old wireless."

Rose's eyes went wide. "I have no idea what happened to Nana's wireless," she recited, sounding mechanical.

"Well, I do. And, Rose, if you don't do this for me... I'll have to tell Nana it was you. My conscience is eating away at me." Albus held a hand over his heart.

"I'll bet," Rose muttered sourly. "Will you tell her it was Lily's idea?"

"Lily has no idea what happened to Nana's wireless," Albus said, and winked at Rose.

Oh, great. That was how things were going to go down. "One month. I'll pretend to date your foul friend for one month, and my involvement or lack thereof with Nana's old wireless goes with you to your grave," Rose said levelly, pointing at Albus.

"Three months. If necessary," Albus proposed.

"Two. And your grave. I mean it, Potter. You never threaten me with this again."

"Never," Albus promised, slinging an arm around her shoulders, and steering her down the corridor once more. "If we hurry, we've still got a good half hour before lunch. Think of all the help you could give me in that time."

Rose laughed, despite herself. "You're delusional. Delusion Al."

"Very funny, Rosie Dozy," Albus muttered, pushing the door to the classroom open. Roxanne and Scorpius were inside in silence, sitting several desks apart. She picked the desk next to Roxanne, and pulled out her books.

It was hard to concentrate after that. Rose abandoned her Potions essay in favour of drawing up a list of rules for Scorpius. If she were going to do this thing, she wanted to do it properly.

It didn't help that Scorpius kept looking at her. She guessed it was because he knew Albus would have spoken to her and he was trying to gauge her reaction, but she really wished he'd keep his eyes on his own work.

"Rose, what did you write about non-verbal charms?"

"They're useful if you've lost your voice," Rose responded, wondering if 'we only spend an hour together per week' was an unreasonable rule. Maybe she could try for half an hour first, and progress from there.

"That's all you wrote?" Roxanne asked sceptically. "Well, at least I won't get the worst mark in class."

Rose snapped to attention at that. "Sorry. I was miles away." She caught Scorpius's smirk out of the corner of her eye. Was this really going to be worse than Nana finding out that Rose had been the one to destroy her wireless? She sighed. Yes, because this would be over in two months. Or sooner, if Scorpius got back with his girlfriend sooner. Nana would never forget who ruined her wireless, especially because Rose had lied to her about it. "Non-verbal spells are useful for the element of surprise, but they lack the power of a verbal spell."

"Are all non-verbal spells equally less powerful?" Scorpius asked. "Or does it vary from attack, defence, transfiguration...?"

Rose propped her chin up with her hands, staring at him but not really seeing him. How she wished she could look it up. "Atkinson says the strength of the spell depends on the caster," she responded. "I suppose it would vary according to their aptitude for a certain type of magic."

"I guess wizards are too variable for an actual study, although I'm sure you could work around it somehow," Scorpius mused. He was beginning to look unnerved under Rose's gaze; she shook herself, and returned her eyes to her page. Maybe she could handle an hour a week with him.

At that moment, her book rose off the table. She blinked at it, surprised, and then spied Scorpius with his wand out. Fine. Two could play at that game.

She whipped her wand out, and Scorpius's desk began shrinking. He'd been leaning an elbow on it, grinning at her, and nearly toppled over as he lost his support. Her book crashed back down, just missing her head. "Malfoy!" she exclaimed, stunned at how close she'd been to death-by-textbook.

"You made me lose my concentration," he snapped back. "That wouldn't have happened if you hadn't shrunk my bloody desk. _Engorgio_."

"Children, children," Albus said wearily. "Roxy, let's go to lunch before we get caught in the firing line. These two can sort out their differences here." He collected his bag, and handed back Scorpius's Defence essay. "If anybody comes to lunch missing limbs or having turned a funny colour, I'm going to be very unhappy."

"Your desk is bigger than the others," Rose pointed out as her cousins left the room.

Scorpius shrugged. "At least it's fit for more than pixies now." He paused, eyeing her carefully. "I take it Al spoke to you?"

Rose toyed with the idea of saying no, and making Scorpius explain it himself. Then, she relented. If she were going to have to get along with him for two months, she might as well start now. "Yes."

"And?"

"And he had sufficient blackmail material on me," Rose answered. "Here. I wrote out a list of rules."

Scorpius took the sheaf of parchment with raised eyebrows. "No touching? Weasley, no one will believe we're dating if I don't _touch_ you."

"Limited touching," Rose conceded, aware that her cheeks were beginning to heat up. She pressed her hand against one, willing it to cool down before he noticed.

"An hour a week together? No discussion of Quid- wait, no kissing? Weasley, have you ever dated anyone?"

"Yes," Rose mumbled, refusing to look at him. She was worried that she would try to punch him if she did, and that would contravene rule #13. This was all Celestina Warbeck's fault.

He took his quill out, dipped it in her inkwell, and hunched over the parchment, blocking her view. After a minute or so, he handed the page back to her.

All her rules had been crossed out.

"Malfoy," she ground out.

"They're all stupid, Weasel." He slipped an arm around her shoulders, fingers tightening when she tried to wriggle free. "Here are my rules. You pretend that you actually like me - it shouldn't be hard. We spend time together, mostly in this little study group. We try not to kill each other." He tapped her lightly on the nose. "How does that sound?"

_Repulsive_, Rose thought. "No open mouth kissing," she said instead. "No inappropriate touching. No telling people or otherwise insinuating that we're sleeping together - because we're not, and we won't. If you're not back with the girl by the end of two months, I choose how and when to break up with you."

"Two months? That's-"

"The deal," Rose said evenly. "Take it or leave it. Obviously, I'd prefer that you left it." When there was no response, she asked, "Why are you doing this? Surely it would be best to give her some space. If she finds out about this, it's just going to upset her further."

Scorpius shrugged. "She's getting space. If she's not interested, this won't bother her at all. This is just a nudge in the right direction. I think. I hope."

"You're an idiot," Rose said, with no real heat. "I hope your scheme falls flat on its backside."

He turned to her, and now they were face to face, Rose was very aware of him - the height difference, the way his eyes crinkled at the corners in amusement. He leaned over her, and she instinctively grappled for the desk to support herself. Probably, he knew what effect he was having on her, because he laughed. "That's just because you want me all to yourself for two months, Weasel."

"No calling me Weasel," she said hoarsely. Rules, yes, get back to rules, Rose.

Thankfully, Scorpius pulled away from her then. She fumbled for her books, suddenly eager to keep herself occupied. "Whatever you say, my little stoat. Want to hold hands on the way to the Dining Hall?"

If only looks could kill.

He grinned, obviously not having expected a verbal response, and waited whilst she packed up her things. "Hurry up, darling. The first thing you should know about me is that I like my food like I like my women." He winked at her. "Hot."

For a moment, Rose weighted her textbooks in her hand, and then decided she probably shouldn't throw them at him. "You can carry my bag, Malfoy." She silently reversed the spell that lightened her books, and smiled at him as she handed it over. "Let's get this over with."


	3. Smart Martens

Again, many thanks for the lovely comments! I really appreciate it :)

* * *

><p>"What did you do to Rose Weasley? She looks like she's completely head over heels for you."<p>

Scorpius's head shot up, and he scanned the Ravenclaw table until he found Rose, who was glaring at him. "Some of us just have that knack," he said dryly, waving at his faux-girlfriend.

"I think you made her angrier," Francis sniggered. "Whatever made you pick _her_? I reckon she'd rather kill you than kiss you."

"Temporary insanity." Scorpius sighed, and took another sip of juice, trying to ignore Barnaby practically licking his plate to Scorpius's right. "Don't worry. She's only contractually obliged for two months."

When there was no response from his year-mate, Scorpius turned, finding Francis's mouth hanging open. "Two months? Mate. I'd start planning your funeral now. There is no way you're going to come out of this alive."

Unfortunately, he was probably right. Scorpius had rushed headlong into this plot, assuming any girl would fit his purpose. He hadn't even given himself breathing space between Al's suggestion, and planning how to convince Rose. Gryffindor thinking (or lack thereof) was infectious. If he had only gone to lunch in between, Francis would have talked him round. Maybe Scorpius's own brain would even have intervened at some point. He did have a strong survival instinct, after all. This was pure lunacy. Not only was Rose going to eat him for breakfast, April would never believe they were dating. He was risking his neck for nothing.

It was entirely his own fault, too, for relishing in embarrassing Rose by entering the Dining Hall together. He hadn't even thought of the repercussions he would suffer, or the fact that he was now definitely stuck with dating her. Probably, the rocks with which she had apparently filled her bag (how did that girl not have more defined muscles, carrying around a bag like that all day?) had drained all the sense from his head.

And now his table wouldn't stop talking about Rose.

"Honestly, if this little scheme of yours means I have to spend time with a dirty little _Weasley_-"

"Funnily enough, 'this little scheme of mine' _which you came up with_ doesn't involve you at all," Scorpius snapped, suddenly frustrated. "Just eat, Nott. Nobody cares that you don't like the Weasleys."

"And you do, I suppose?" Francis enquired, his tone sharp. Even Barnaby looked up from his plate at that. "Little Scorpius Malfoy, closet Weasley fan. Is that why you spend so much time around Albus Potter? All this time, we thought you were on your knees for Potter's autograph - never knew it was his mum you were hoping to f-"

Scorpius stood up, intending to leave, and then wavered. Normally, he would have headed for April's part of the table, if they hadn't already been sitting together. That was the trouble; no girlfriend meant he had to listen to Nott during mealtimes. Sitting with Albus was out of the question, because it meant being surrounded by Gryffindors. He didn't want to sit at the end of the Slytherin table on his own.

But wait - he _did_ have a girlfriend. Or, at least, he had a fake one. It was better than nothing.

Rose looked unsurprisingly displeased when he sat down next to her.

"Bugger off, Malfoy," she said, by way of acknowledgement. He didn't blame her; there wasn't much room, so he was uncomfortably wedged between her and one of the Ravenclaw Beaters. Neither moved to accommodate Scorpius.

"That's really how you're going to greet your boyfriend?" he asked, tilting his head on one side. The girl across from him actually gasped. This sort of thing was definitely more fun on Rose's turf.

Rose gave him a look, the sort his mother had perfected. It must be a knack girls had; Scorpius had tried to muster the necessary scorn, but it just never worked the same, for some reason. "I don't have to greet you. We were together ten minutes ago, and since then, you've just been sitting across the room."

He grinned, a little smug, and reached for her fork, which she had released in her haste to spurn him. "Yes. I saw you couldn't take your eyes off me." He took advantage of her indignation to spear some chicken onto the utensil.

"That's my fork," Rose informed him. "Get your own. Better yet, go back to where you were sitting, at your own table."

"Can't," Scorpius said around the mouthful of food. "I missed you too much."

"Rose." The girl across the table leaned over, putting her elbow on her plate. Scorpius thought about letting her know, but then reasoned she would figure it out soon enough herself. She was a Ravenclaw, after all. "You _can't_ tell me you've taken leave of your senses and-"

Rose wrestled her fork out of Scorpius's hand. "Apparently so. He was endearing earlier. Like a puppy. Don't know what I was thinking now."

"My puppy steals food all the time," the Beater piped up. Scorpius blinked; he didn't think he'd ever heard the boy speak before. "And he also suffers from separation anxiety. I think the puppy simile is still applicable."

Rose smiled then, and Scorpius felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. He should probably have stayed at his own table. Antagonising Rose when she was alone was one thing, but now she had support. "Max, how do you get your dog to behave?" She threw Scorpius a merry glance. "It appears I could use some tips in puppy management."

"You could feed me treats," Scorpius put in hastily, eager that the brute of a Beater didn't take a hand in his disciplining, since he wasn't quite sure how far Rose would take it. "I strongly support the theory of good behaviour engineered by positive reinforcement." He winked at Rose, and was amused to see her shudder. He liked that she was the sort of girl who wore her heart on her sleeve; it made teasing her that much more fun. "I think I'd take well to being petted, too."

"I believe you'd have to behave yourself in the first instance to warrant a reward," the girl across the table (what was her name? Faith? Patience? Some form of a virtue, he thought) said dryly. "There has to be good behaviour to reinforce." She had finally noticed her elbow had landed in the remnants of her food. Of course, disappointingly for Scorpius, the matter was resolved with a quick spell, with none of the squeals that would have been involved had the same event occurred on the Slytherin table. Ravenclaws were so serious.

As though to prove his point, the three surrounding him subsequently launched into an intense discussion on the merits and disadvantages of dropping subjects for NEWTS. Scorpius attempted briefly to follow it, but honestly, they had been at school for a month already. Five subjects were enough for him, and he considered the trio to be a little mentally unstable for opting to undertake more. Why would you do more than you had to? Barnaby was taking only three subjects, and had it not been for the thought of what his father might say, Scorpius would seriously have considered following suit.

His attention drifted, and he looked up towards his own table, his eyes settling on April. Her friend Colleen nudged her as she noticed Scorpius's gaze. April frowned at him, and mouthed something that he didn't catch. He shrugged at her unhelpfully. She would understand that he hadn't been able to bear Nott's company for long; it had happened often enough over their three year relationship. Most of their make-ups had been prompted by his dorm-mates' behaviour.

"Scorpius, what do you think?" the virtuously-named girl probed.

"I wasn't listening," he admitted, startled that he'd been addressed.

Rose gave him a knowing look. "Grace-" Ah, of course. Elbow-in-food girl was called Grace. Maybe her parents had a sense of irony, or perhaps her personality had rebelled against her name. "-likes canvassing for opinions, that's all. You know, Scorpius, actually, I have to say I'm surprised you're taking five NEWTS. I thought you didn't consider hard work to be in your best interests."

Scorpius suppressed a grin. He was reasonably sure that Rose was quoting him verbatim from their Herbology group project in fifth year. She'd ended up taking the brunt of the work, and they had both received the credit for it. She hadn't been too happy about it at the time. Longbottom always had favoured her, though. Fortunately, he was saved from a response (which would have gone along the lines of "my father made me do it") when a hand tapped on his shoulder. He turned to find April.

"Can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Obviously you _can_," Grace interjected. The appearance of his ex-girlfriend appeared to have riled the other girl, for some reason. April had told him that sometimes, girls were just like that. He accepted it, finding the minds of girls too difficult to fathom himself. "Whether you _may_-"

"Shush, Grace," interrupted Rose, her voice uncharacteristically soft. April was determinedly not looking at her. "Go on, Scorpius. Take as long as you need."

He climbed out of the seat awkwardly, trying his best not to lean on either Rose or her Beater friend, and not succeeding. They exited the Great Hall silently, and Scorpius thought these might be the most uncomfortable minutes of his life. Had the plan worked _already_? Maybe he should make up with Nott - the success of his suggestion like this warranted a bottle of Firewhiskey, at least.

April's eyes were overly bright. "So - Rose Weasley. I guess it's true, then?"

Scorpius gave a non-committal half-nod. This wasn't quite the reaction he'd anticipated.

"Not even a full day after we've broken up?" she burst out, her voice thick with tears.

Oh, Merlin. He hadn't even _thought_ about that. It turned his foolish little plan into something altogether more cunning and selfish - something that ran a little too close to cheating for comfort. He supposed he hadn't considered it because he wasn't really starting anything with Rose.

"April, I'm sorry - it doesn't mean-" Scorpius stopped, running a hand through his hair. He wasn't quite sure how to proceed. If he told her it didn't mean anything, that negated the whole relationship and any 'good boyfriend' behaviour he might exhibit. If he told her it meant something, she would take it personally. Obviously. "It's not serious. We just talked this morning, and thought we'd see how things went. She isn't you," he finished, swallowing hard. It might just be enough.

It _was_ enough to start the tears. Girls crying made him (understandably) nervous, and his arms hung uselessly by his side. Were you allowed to hug ex-girlfriends? Were there rules about this kind of thing?

After a moment or two passed (with the tears not reducing in quantity, and students beginning to leave the Great Hall), Scorpius folded his arms around her. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I just didn't think."

"Tell me something I don't know," April said, wiping at her eyes. "I like you, Scorpius, I honestly do. But you never do seem to think about me."

"Maybe we could try being friends?" Scorpius asked hopefully, thinking it might be a good way to show how he was changing.

She pulled away from him, fumbling in her bag and withdrawing a tissue. "Maybe." She smiled at him, without it quite reaching her eyes. "At least now you'll always have your homework done on time."

He made a forced sort of laugh, appreciating April's attempts at cordiality. At the same time, realisation was sinking in that he had essentially set himself up for two months' of homework club. The only bright point in that hole of misery was that Rose always held the right answers, if he could only persuade her to give them up.

"Scorpius," Rose said from behind him. "We have Charms now. I picked up your bag for you."

Pain flickered over April's face, and she turned and fled before Scorpius could say anything further. "What did you do that for?" he demanded, rounding on Rose. "We were talking."

"I wasn't saving you from her; I was saving her from you. You were upsetting her," replied Rose, lifting the bag strap over his shoulder. He adjusted it, feeling the bag about to slip off. "Her friends will be better for her than you right now - they're not suddenly thrusting new relationships on her in the middle of the Dining Hall. During lunch, no less, when she's still got half a day of classes to go. How will she concentrate after that?"

Well. That was probably true. Scorpius exhaled, and aimed a kick at the stone wall. "I was stupid. Should have left it more than a day between breaking up with her and - you know." He gestured at her. Was this plan going to work? April didn't look like the kind of girl who was going to fight to get him back. She looked like the kind of girl who wasn't going to speak to him again. He supposed only time would tell, and the nicer he was to Rose, the more likely April would hear about it, and know he was determined to change.

Rose was gaping at him. "You two broke up less than a day ago? _Malfoy_ - that's low, even for you. What's she going to think of me now?"

"What's she going to think of _me_?" he said glumly, feeling it was the more pertinent point. Rose wasn't still trying to date her.

"She's going to think you're an idiot. I can tell you that it's a popular opinion." Rose patted him on the back, although he wasn't soothed by the gesture. "My dad's shop does a line in 'I'm with Stupid' merchandise. I am tempted to invest in some for the coming two months." She shot him a smile - that made two today from her, even if it was by way of teasing, and very much at his expense. Normally, she let herself get too preoccupied by academia, or certainly she did when Scorpius was around. "People need to be warned."

He slid an arm around her shoulder as they began to walk to class, but allowed her to work her way free a moment later. "Whatever you want, my ponderous polecat."

A faint note of irritation entered her voice as she said, "When I asked you not to call me Weasel, I didn't intend for that to open up a stream of weasel-related endearments."

"You should have specified that when we were agreeing terms," Scorpius reprimanded, endeavouring to keep the laughter from his voice. April's reaction hadn't been forgotten, but he did at least feel better about himself - probably because he wasn't faced with girl tears. "Now it's all set in stone."

"You'll run out of weasel-related endearments soon," Rose answered confidently, rummaging through her bag.

He cocked his head on one side. "Perhaps. I wonder if I should open it up to the whole Mustelidae family, really. Or I could stick with one in particular. What do you think, my smart marten?"

"I think you're lucky that I'm already in trouble for getting banned from the library today, and so I won't hex you right now," she muttered, and he could just tell that she was shooting him a dirty look. "But if you sit with me in Charms, so help me, I'll-"

Scorpius crossed his arms over his chest, having stopped outside the classroom. "You'll what, Weasley?" he asked, unable to help a smirk. "What will you do to me in front of a _teacher_? Anyway, _Don't Call Me Weasel_, Albus and I always sit together in Charms. We'd appreciate it if you didn't crowd us; you never know when somebody is trying to copy your work."

With that, he disappeared inside the room. He was pretty sure her jaw had hit the floor.


	4. Racing

Thank you for the comments! Sorry about the slight delay with this chapter; I am trying to post regularly, but work has been hectic, plus I'm moving this weekend, so things are a little unsettled right now.

And big thanks to Lisa for her help :)

* * *

><p>"Professor Longbottom! I have a question about the essay."<p>

Neville smiled at Rose, even though she made a similar statement nearly every class, and asked that she wait behind so they could go through it.

She liked these moments of Herbology best. Her fellow students stumbled over each other to be the first to leave, and Neville pulled out two armchairs (strangely out of place in the middle of Greenhouse Three, but somehow suiting Neville all the same), and two mugs of hot chocolate.

Sometimes, her questions about the set work would be fabricated, in an attempt to manufacture this exact situation. Rose was close to her parents, and being unable to contact them for months at a time was not always easy. Today, however, marked one week and one day since she had been banned from the library (one week and one day since she had been blackmailed into pretending to date Scorpius Malfoy - seven weeks left, if anybody was counting).

"Better make this a quick one, Rosie. I've got third year Ravenclaws and Slytherins next." He sighed, shooting a spell at the door, and jumping when it slammed shut. "They make me remember why I used to prefer plants to people."

"I need access to some books," she blurted out, when her uncle sat down. Of course, he wasn't technically family, but he felt more like an uncle than her Uncle Percy, or her Uncle Charlie - whom she liked well enough, when he was around.

Neville set aside a plant he had evidently been going to show her, and gave her a grave look. He was in teacher-mode, which although not unexpected, did not bode well for Rose. "Are they in the Restricted Section?"

"No - in the normal section," Rose said, blushing furiously. Perhaps she should have asked Grace or Lily to fetch them instead, but Grace was forgetful, and Lily had to be bribed.

In a would-be casual movement, Neville rolled the sleeves up of his robes. It just so happened that this exposed his scarred forearms, and Rose knew the point he was making. Those were the marks of the punishments Neville had received at school - and if Rose were getting herself into trouble, Neville expected her to have a damned good reason for doing so.

The problem was that she didn't. Unless, that is, contributing to Scorpius Malfoy being tipped off his chair was a good reason. She had the sneaking suspicion that Neville wouldn't think so.

"And why, Rosie, do you need my help getting books from the normal section?"

She blew on her hot chocolate to delay the inevitable. "I got banned." She hesitated, but knew that if she were to get what she wanted, she would have to provide a full confession. "I was - sort of - fighting with Scorpius Malfoy. Mostly not. He fell out of his seat."

If Neville weren't an adult, Rose thought he might have laughed there. His lips certainly twitched. "For somebody who claims to love the library, you do seem to spend a lot of your time getting yourself banned from it, Rosie." She half-shrugged, but it seemed he didn't expect a verbal response; he continued, "I might consider talking to your head of house for this, but from what I hear, your problems with Scorpius seem to be resolving themselves."

Neville's eyes were twinkling. Rose put her head in her hands. She wasn't surprised that the news had reached the teachers - James had started a very long and loud argument with her in the Dining Hall about it two days ago.

"Please don't tell Dad," she entreated, emerging from her hands. Damage control was the best she could hope for in this situation. "I just - I don't think it will last very long, and I would much rather tell him myself."

"Oh, I have no intention of being the messenger," Neville chuckled. "I wouldn't wish that on any owl. Be sure to invite me to the wedding, though. Your Aunt Hannah and I do enjoy a good wedding."

Rose shot him a sour look, and took a large gulp of her drink, suddenly eager to be out of the greenhouse. "Do you think you could sign the form for me, Uncle Neville?"

"Only if you promise to apologise fully to Madame Pince," Neville answered, searching for his quill. "She'll be after me next if I overrule her. I think she doesn't believe I'm not still a student."

* * *

><p>"I win!" James shouted exultantly.<p>

Rose thumped her forehead against her desk. She really, really missed the library. Apologising to Madame Pince hadn't done her any good, as it turned out, though Uncle Neville's note had done the trick in getting her the books she'd needed. The quiet study sessions had exploded once the other Weasley-Potters got in on the act (though Rose suspected the only reason James hadn't already been banned from the library was because he rarely went near it). Her Ravenclaw friends had taken one look at her cousins, and left.

Rose couldn't say she blamed them. True, she normally liked to join in her family's Pocket Dragon races, but the spells were wearing off her Chinese Fireball. It tended to just splutter smoke these days, and chased its tail instead of the finish line. And her Runes essay wouldn't finish itself.

"Don't worry," Roxanne said, perching on the edge of Rose's desk. "It's almost time for Quidditch practise. I'll have the troublemakers off your hands soon enough."

"You lost again, then?" Rose guessed, wrinkling her forehead as she tried to remember the correct translations. "I think it'll help if you get off my dictionary."

Roxanne shook her head, her braids whipping out. "No, I don't think your dictionary will help," she said glumly. "I'll see if Dad can repair Alfie, but he might be on his last legs this time. It's your dad's turn for this Hogsmeade weekend, isn't it? Let's hope Alfie can hang on till Christmas."

"I meant it'll help with my Runes homework," Rose corrected, but Roxanne did not seem to take the hint. "Alfie should have been put out to pasture years ago with my Doris. I'm amazed that Uncle George even managed to keep him going this long."

"Want to take on the champion, Rosie?" James asked, crouching down by her desk. He waggled his eyebrows at her, drawing a giggle. They really didn't get to spend enough time together at Hogwarts, being in different years and different Houses, and since this was James's last year here, there wasn't much time remaining. Perhaps this library ban was good for something, after all. "I'm sure your old girl is good for one more race."

"James, I have homework!" she protested, though she hadn't written a line in a good five minutes. "And I'm not sure Florence could even handle another race without self-cannibalising."

James snorted, and Albus's face joined his brother's in Rose's line of vision. "C'mon, Rose. I'll lend you Sir Sparks-a-lot. You have the best chance of deflating that fat head of his." He held his Longhorn out to her, which was looking somewhat the worse for wear after a tussle with James's Ironbelly.

"He means you'll be the last to lose to James, so he thinks that means James will ease off on him," Hugo announced, from behind his pile of books. He spoke with practised weariness, the youngest boy in their extended family who was so often the subject of James and Freddie's practical jokes. "He forgets that Rose doesn't play on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, which will make him James's favourite target again as soon as practise starts."

Albus's mouth opened and closed a few times in disbelief. Seeing that he was about to interrupt her brother's study once more (one of them should get something done, and Roxanne wasn't moving off the Runes dictionary), Rose held her hand out for the miniature dragon figure.

James gave a triumphant yell, and whisked Rose out of her seat. She found herself dumped without ceremony at the starting line, Albus's dragon clutched in her palm. Roxanne, who occasionally did Quidditch commentary, appointed herself as referee and commentator. She ignored, with some effort, James's entreaties to "move things the eff along", and set James's dragon back by the starting line. The finish line sparkled at the other side of the classroom, at the end of a path clear of tables and chairs.

Roxanne muttered the activation spell, and the dragons jolted to life, snapping their jaws and unfurling their wings. Rose and James both touched their wands to their respective dragons, binding the dragon to them for the duration of the race. There could be no spells cast on each other's dragons (though interference was permitted. Rose, however, always preferred a clean race).

"Ready - set - go!" Roxanne shouted, and the dragons took off, knocking against one another. Rose's wand wavered - she only had three spells, and didn't want to waste one of them untangling her dragon from James's. She decided a simple speed spell might help, and whispered it quietly, hoping that James would forget the wording. Sir Sparks-a-lot burst ahead of the Ironbelly.

She had forgotten James's favoured spell - _Engorgio_. His dragon's wings increased in size, and it easily caught up Sparks-a-lot. Rose called out, "_Geminio_," and suddenly there were two Sparks-a-lots racing for the finish. Sparks was a nose ahead - Ironbelly's wings were wavering and shrinking as the spell wore off - it was close-

"What's going on here, then?"

As one, their heads whipped around. Scorpius Malfoy stood, framed in the doorway, his schoolbag in his hands. He looked slightly unnerved to find so many eyes on him.

Belatedly remembering the race, Rose turned back, to find both dragons sitting at the finish line. "Who won?"

They glanced at each other. "You did, Rose," Albus said, with a confident air that probably meant he had no idea.

"No fair!" James protested. "Malfoy distracted us all. I didn't even get to use my best spell. Let's have a rematch."

"Oh, no," Roxanne said quickly, rising to her feet. Evidently, James's competitive streak had worn on her last nerve. Rose suspected Roxanne's own Pocket Dragon's inability to compete had a lot to do with that. "We'll call it a draw. Quidditch time now."

James, who until that point had been very vocal about only being there to kill time until Quidditch practise, was suddenly hesitant. "But Rosie doesn't play Quidditch. Maybe we should stay."

Rose and Albus shared an amused look, as Roxanne steered James out of the room.

"Right, lovebirds and Hugo. I'm off to get frozen to my broomstick. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Albus adjusted the strap of his bag over his chest, and winked.

Hugo scrambled to his feet. "No - wait, don't leave me with them," he said urgently. "That's my _sister_, Al. My sister and her boyfriend."

Rose crossed her arms over her chest, offended. "Your attention to detail is unparalleled, little brother," she said, dryly. "But it seems to have escaped you that you're not actually good enough to be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, so I'm afraid you're stuck here."

Hugo sneered at her. It hadn't, precisely, been fair of her to bring up his lack of talent. James hadn't been gentle when he'd told Hugo that he hadn't made the team. She secretly suspected it had more to do with too many family members on the same squad; it had always been a problem for their lot. "Sod that. Some of us are still allowed in the library." He piled his books together and, without pausing to put them in his bag, departed through the door Albus was holding open.

There was a silence, and Rose winced. She would have to apologise for that later. Fortunately, Albus spared her the lecture, and left, whistling the tune to 'Weasley is Our King'.

"I hate that song," Scorpius burst out, and Rose grinned. It was the traditional Gryffindor song - Freddie's old trademark - though Ravenclaw had stolen it once or twice for Louis.

"Don't tell me you're a sore loser, Malfoy," she teased, picking up James's Ironbelly. It was motionless again, and rather lighter than she'd expected. She supposed the name 'Ironbelly' had tricked her. James had never let her so much as touch it before.

She was growing rather used to Scorpius's company. He generally turned up when she was studying, or with Albus, and they had managed to be almost entirely civil all week. Prefect rounds and the Ravenclaw dormitories were her only sure-fire ways to be rid of him, but she hadn't resorted to those yet.

To be honest, she hadn't felt the need to. Although she might pretend she was annoyed that he kept seeking her out (and, really, there was no need for them to be spending so much time together, especially when nobody was around to witness it), he wasn't _all_ bad.

Scorpius ignored her remark, and squinted at the Pocket Dragon. "I've never seen one up close before," he admitted, taking it from her before she could protest that James would have his head. "They're not particularly common in Slytherin. Can't support blood traitors, and all that." The wry twist to his mouth quelled her temper at his comments. It was rare that people publicly spoke out against the Weasleys these days, the war being too raw and recent, but she knew the old feelings still held strong amongst some. Scorpius's family, she suspected, disliked the Weasleys on a purely personal basis, and that was all right by her.

"I think Lily's got her own Pocket Dragon army." Rose swapped the Ironbelly for Albus's Longhorn; he raised an eyebrow at her, but maybe he understood, because he made no other comment. "Uncle George dotes on her. She always know how to get her way with him - well, with anyone."

He snorted his agreement, setting down Sir Sparks-a-lot. "So, Weasley. Show me what they've got."

Experiencing that fierce buzz of pride that always came from displaying her father's products, Rose first set Roxanne and James's dragons back in their pods. It was more than her life's worth to risk either of them getting damaged. She was more than happy, on the other hand, to risk Albus's, since he was the reason Scorpius was there in the first place.

Before she knew it, half an hour had been whiled away, simply putting the Longhorn through its paces. Scorpius - when he applied himself - was a quick learner, and thoughtful in his application of spells, using some variations that Rose hadn't considered.

"You look pensive," Scorpius drawled, using _Wingardium Leviosa_ to elevate the dragon further.

It wasn't the right time to ask him about schoolwork. Rose released the lip she'd been chewing. It was just incredibly aggravating that he had the brains, and seemed to outright refuse to use them properly. But, it wasn't her place to nag him. If he wanted to slack off and ruin his career prospects, that was his problem - and potentially his parents' problem, if they still had to finance him.

"I'm thinking about the time Lucy used that charm, and it smashed her dragon into little pieces," she lied, eyes fixing on Sir Sparks-a-lot.

Scorpius was looking at her, she could tell, but she refused to return his gaze. Somehow, he would know she was lying if she looked at him, and that would make this a much bigger deal than it was. After a few seconds, he sighed, and brought Sir Sparks-a-lot down safely. "Have it your way, Miss. No damage to Sir Sparks-a-lot on my watch."

She scoffed at him. "You're saving your own back there. You don't want Al mad at you if you ruin his toy. He loses enough to James as it is with a fully-functioning one."

"Such is the fate of a middle child," Scorpius said dramatically, peering once more at the dragon. "Too young to know the tricks of the eldest, too old to cheat the youngest."

"Thus spake the wise only child," Rose returned dryly. His statement may have rung true for Albus, but certainly didn't hold water with the other middle children she knew, like Dominique, who ran rings around both Victoire and Louis.

He clutched at his chest, earning a smile from her, though she pursed her lips once she realised. "You wound me, fair Weasley. I have made siblings my lifelong study, and fancy myself quite the expert."

Unable to help herself, Rose giggled. "You're an idiot," she told him, succinctly. Really, though, she couldn't imagine _not_ having siblings. In a way, she and her cousins were close enough in age and proximity that she almost - almost - had more siblings than she could handle. "Did you ever want a brother or sister?"

"All the time," Scorpius answered, sitting down on the floor. He patted the space next to him, and she was sitting before she had consciously thought about doing so. "My mum was rubbish at playing action heroes with me."

Rose laughed, but entreated him to be serious. It was rare that Albus wasn't around, that nobody else was around, and she thought she might as well seize the opportunity. Albus's plan was for her to befriend him, after all, and part of that was getting to know him.

"I _am_ being serious," he responded, nudging her with his elbow. "I tried my best to teach her, but eventually, I had to relegate her to the role of damsel in distress. Dad, too, when he played."

She had only glimpsed Draco Malfoy briefly at the train station once or twice, but the thought made her eyes crinkle with amusement. Her father had always been perfectly eager to join in their games, but her father was also a long way from the stately Malfoy.

Recognising that Scorpius was not going to confide in her on this particular subject, and of course that he had no real reason to, Rose changed tact. "How are things going with April?"

"Progressing." Scorpius drew his right knee up to his chest, his left leg still sprawled out. She suddenly noticed that their hands were close together - if she moved her little finger two inches, they would be touching.

She withdrew her hand entirely.

"That's good," Rose managed, folding her hands in her lap.

The corners of his mouth flickered, but she was unable to tell if she was the cause. "Definitely. Yesterday, she asked me to get out of her way, rather than shoving past me. We'll be back together in no time."

"What do you like about her?" The question was out before Rose could consider whether it was too personal.

Scorpius looked surprised. He leaned back on his hands, a thoughtful expression creeping over his face. "She's sweet. And funny. Awful at flying, though - I tried to take her up on my broomstick once, and no, that's not a euphemism, Weasley. Couldn't get her to balance properly, and we nearly ended up crashing into a tree. Not sure my broom's ever entirely forgiven me. They're sensitive beasts, you know."

"And girlfriends aren't?" Rose enquired.

"You're the one who called April a beast, not me," Scorpius replied, flashing her a grin. "But I can tell you she wouldn't take well to it."

"You've knowledge beyond your years, young Malfoy," Rose intoned, crossing her legs. "All right. As your partner in crime, I vote we speed things up a notch. You should conjure me some flowers at breakfast tomorrow - I've noticed she tends to arrive early, too. The spell is-"

"_Orchideous_," Scorpius said, flicking his wand. Flowers sprouted from the tip, and he winked at Rose. "Dad forgot Mum's birthday a few years back. This... didn't help. I like the idea, though I think I'll do it Saturday instead."

She took a flower from him, letting it lie flat on her palm. It was, she had to admit, nicely made. Scorpius plucked it from her, tucking it behind her ear. "There," he said softly, his fingers lingering as he secured the stem. "An orchid for an otter. How about that?"

Rose moved her head away from him, swallowing hard. She was glad of the intrusion as her relatives swarmed the room once more, muddy and loud, and a wonderful distraction from her racing heart.


	5. Favourite Ferrets

Thank you for the comments! All settled into my new place now, so might be able to post weekly again :)

Guest - Albus in fact is a Gryffindor in this fic; perhaps you have it mixed up with another? The Weasley-Potters are mostly Gryffindors, with Rose in Ravenclaw, and Lily in Slytherin.

* * *

><p>All in all, Scorpius considered things to be going well.<p>

April was obviously taking the bait. He had spent an hour in the Slytherin common room yesterday, painstakingly transfiguring roses into a garland (and slicing his fingers in the process until he decided to do away with the thorns). He'd intended to merely drape them around Rose's neck at breakfast, but then April's friend had intervened, dropping into the seat beside him.

He had eyed Nadine suspiciously, wondering whether he needed to cast a protection spell. She was prone to lashing out, and had never held back with him previously.

"April wants to know," Nadine had announced, with no preamble, "if you're taking the Weasley girl to Hogsmeade this weekend."

To be honest, it hadn't so much as crossed Scorpius's mind. So, of course, he had opened his mouth, and said, "Of course."

He would have preferred to have spent the day wandering around with Albus, laughing and joking, and feeling like a Hogwarts student rather than a Slytherin. But then, there was no reason that he _couldn't_ spend time with both Rose and Albus. That was one of the benefits of dating your friend's cousin. Fake-dating. Whatever.

The rift between himself and Francis hadn't yet healed. Scorpius didn't need it to as he had in previous years when they had fought. He had either Rose or Albus in all his classes, sat with them at mealtimes (when Rose wasn't threatening him with grievous bodily harm), and occupied his evenings well enough.

So, that was how Scorpius ended up sliding into the place next to Rose at breakfast (if he arrived before her, she sat elsewhere, but her fellow Ravenclaws had learned that he would wedge himself in next to her somehow and consequently always left a space). He planted a kiss on her cheek, and watched her skin flare red in embarrassment. Had he kissed her before? He wasn't quite sure now.

"I got you something," he murmured in her ear. He concentrated, flicking the tip of his wand at her plate, and it transfigured into a semblance of the rose garland he had spent all evening on yesterday.

"Is it a plate for breakfast?" Rose asked dryly, poking at the rose garland with her fork. It wasn't quite the appreciation he'd pictured, but it would have to do.

"Who needs to eat when they're in love?" Scorpius responded, piling his own plate high with sausages and eggs.

He kept his face turned away from her, because he knew her furrowed brow and tight lips would tempt him into laughter, and he had already been so close to spoiling the entire dating game at the Ravenclaw table before. Grace was far too suspicious a person for her own good. Still, he nearly snickered when Rose answered, "Me. _I_ need to eat, you idiot."

He tweaked her nose, unfortunately leaving his plate unguarded. Quick as a flash, she had exchanged his food for her roses.

"Fine, fine, you can have your breakfast," Scorpius said magnanimously, snatching a sausage from the plate. Who needed cutlery when he had perfectly good fingers? "Although, really, I'm not sure why you need a plate at all." He smirked at her, waiting for her eyebrows to raise in query, and continued, "I hear otters usually eat off their bellies."

"Say goodbye to your loved ones, Malfoy," Rose said, reaching for the milk and pouring herself a glass. It was, possibly, the least threatening accompaniment to her words that she could have chosen. "You're going down for that comment."

"That's funny," Grace said slowly, looking up from her textbook. Scorpius had seen her walk through the corridors - and through several other students not to mention ghosts - with her nose in a book, and highly suspected she bathed and slept surrounded by tomes. He found it easier to tolerate her company that way; she wasn't his favourite person when she did emerge from her reading.

Max (Rose had told Scorpius not to refer to him as 'the Beater' enough times that the lesson was starting to stick) snorted from Grace's left, after peering at the title of her book. "_Goblin Contract Law_ is... funny?"

She waved a vague hand at him - Scorpius wasn't wholly sure her mind was in this world - in apparent dismissal. "No, that's not what I meant. You called him Malfoy. Like you always used to."

Rose licked her lips, and Scorpius found his eyes unaccountably drawn there. He had the impression that she was doing some quick thinking. His heart was thumping - stupid, stupid clever Ravenclaws. Why couldn't Rose be surrounded by dolts and idiots like he was in Slytherin?

When she laughed, it rang false. "He deserved it," Rose responded, but her face was turning red as she lied. Scorpius wondered how on earth the Weasleys got away with anything when their very skin colour gave them away. "Did you not hear him say I should eat off my stomach? It's a wonder I didn't break up with him there and then."

It wasn't enough; Grace, queen of the sceptical look, was bestowing one on them right then. Scorpius eased his arm around Rose's waist. "This is why you shouldn't try joking, Rose," he said, in mock-earnestness. He raised his free hand to tuck loose hair behind her ear. "It doesn't become you. That's okay. You can make it up to me in Hogsmeade."

Rose sat perfectly still, blue eyes round as, well, breakfast plates. "I'm not spending the day with you," she said, her eyes flitting to Grace, who had not returned to her book as yet. It must have been some kind of record, though she seemed to be bearing the deprivation well. "I have plans."

Scorpius shrugged, unfazed. "Cancel them," he returned, pulling away from her enough to wind the flowers around her neck. "What could be better than spending Hogsmeade with your boyfriend?"

"I can't," Rose said, allowing him to fasten the flowers into a chain - the sort of chain, unfortunately for Rose, that wouldn't break unless Scorpius broke it himself. He hoped she'd showered already; he wasn't wholly sure the roses would stand up to an onslaught of water. "Grace, please-"

Grace straightened in her seat, looking thoughtful. "I think it sounds like a wonderful idea."

"Grace - you don't understand who will be there," Rose pleaded.

Still assuming the role of adoring boyfriend, Scorpius twined one of her curls around his finger. It was softer than he'd imagined. She hadn't let him close, not within the realms of allowing him to touch her, until then, and it was tempting to test how far her earlier faux-pas would permit him. He thought he'd pushed quite enough boundaries for the moment, however, though he remained as he was because Max was evidently watching them.

"I'm not forcing you to do anything, Rose," Grace said carefully. "I just thought that you would have wanted them to meet. Wouldn't it happen sooner or later anyway? If the two of you are serious about each other, that is."

"The later the better," Rose said fervently, tugging her hair free of Scorpius's grasp.

* * *

><p>All in all, Scorpius considered things to be going extremely badly.<p>

If he hadn't been preoccupied with Rose's hair at breakfast, he might have realised what (or who) Rose was worried about. Instead, he didn't clock until they were standing right outside the shop-front of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

"No."

"My sentiments exactly," Rose said grimly. "Why couldn't you tell Grace you had plans with Al?"

Scorpius scowled at her, folding his arms across his chest. It was now clear to him why Hugo had delivered more four-letter words (some of them accompanied by the suffix '-ing') in two minutes than Scorpius had heard since the start of the school year, after discovering that Scorpius was intending to accompany them on this visit. Scorpius wasn't sure why Hugo hadn't wanted a front-row seat, but perhaps it had something to do with not wanting to spend another 'effing minute in that effing effer's company'. The feeling was mutual, and Scorpius couldn't help but think he wouldn't fare better with the elder Weasley. "It's not _me_ who made her suspicious in the first place, Weasel Queen."

Rose pulled a face at him, making another attempt to sever the rose garland around her neck without success. "You could have said it was too soon to meet my parents."

It would always, always be too soon to meet Ronald Weasley, Scorpius thought privately. How was he to know that Rose's father made a special effort to oversee the Hogsmeade branch when Rose had a designated weekend? "I don't have to stay long," he said instead, wondering if he had a death wish. Why couldn't it have been Rose's mother? Mothers were predisposed to being nicer, kinder, less inclined to dismember their daughters' potential boyfriends - or so he imagined. "But I never met April's parents. Aren't I supposed to be showing her I've changed?"

"I hope you like wearing your ears backwards," was Rose's only response as she pushed open the shop door.

Rose's father wouldn't do that.

... Would he?

Scorpius gulped, and followed her to his doom.

He'd never been inside a Wizard Wheezes's shop, but he had no time to look around. All his attention was taken up with the owner. Ron Weasley, ostensibly, was an ordinary, though tall, man, who delighted in embarrassing his children with public displays of affection, if the way he threw his arms around Rose was any indication. It wasn't until Ron caught sight of Scorpius standing awkwardly in the doorway that Scorpius remembered that this man was a war hero. In that moment, Scorpius would have done a lot to be anywhere else. Even scrubbing the Potions cauldrons with nothing but a wet rag and Moaning Myrtle for company would have been preferable.

"I think you'll find shops more to your taste elsewhere," Ron said coolly, releasing his daughter. He seemed even taller, somehow, and Scorpius stepped back, flat against the door. All his Rose-related misdeeds came to mind, and he hoped fervently that Ron was no Legilimens.

"Dad," Rose reprimanded, punctuating her words with a gentle shove. Scorpius could never imagine remonstrating with his own father in such a manner, especially not in public - if he, the shop assistant, and the two Hufflepuffs in the corner counted as public. "I invited Scorpius here." The lie tripped right off her tongue, and Scorpius was impressed, despite himself. "Scor, don't hang back like that. This is my father, Ron. Dad, this is Scorpius. My-" She flicked a careful look at the Hufflepuffs. "-boyfriend. Can we go into the back for a hot chocolate? I'm sure Steve doesn't mind watching the shop for a while. Hi, Steve."

In this manner, Scorpius found himself shepherded into an even smaller space with Rose's father. It would not have been his first (or second, third, fourth) choice to enter closer confinement, but Rose hadn't given either of them time to protest.

"Boyfriend?" Ron spluttered. Angry red blotches were standing out on his cheeks, but Scorpius discovered he didn't find them as attractive on the father as on the daughter. Which, he supposed, was some relief.

Scorpius's hand tightened in Rose's - he seemed to have clutched hers between the room changes. She squeezed gently in response, but addressed her father. "He's not really my boyfriend, Dad."

As much as Scorpius knew that he _wasn't_ Rose's boyfriend, he was a little upset that she was happy to tell people that he wasn't. He released her fingers immediately, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Ron's eyes flicked between them, and then he sighed and scarfed a hand through his hair. "Teenagers. Okay, take a seat - you too, Malfoy Junior - and fill me in. Keep it clean for your old man."

"Dad!" Rose protested, cheeks pink.

Scorpius grinned, and settled on a stool. Now he was relieved of the pressure of being Weasley's boyfriend, this little visit might be rather fun. More importantly, it was very likely to produce fodder for teasing her later.

Ron waved his free hand, his wand hand busy summoning a flask and three cups. "I was a teenage boy once, Rosie. I know how they think." He flicked his wand, and one of the cups missed Scorpius's outstretched hand, and knocked into his shoulder. Scorpius had to grab it to prevent the cup from continuing to assault his arm. "Sorry about that. Little twitch left over from when I was an Auror."

On second thoughts, perhaps he'd be better leaving whilst he was still in possession of all his body parts.

Rose laughed. The sound made Scorpius start; he hadn't realised she could laugh like that. "Knock it off, Dad. There's no need to frighten him. I'm just helping him out for a few weeks; he's cooked up this daft scheme whereby he thinks having another girlfriend will make his old girlfriend jealous. There's nothing in it."

Ron poured out the hot chocolate - Scorpius noticed his mug was somewhat less full than the other two. "Just so long as this isn't some ploy to win my little girl over," Ron said, levelling Scorpius with a stern look. "Uncle Harry-"

"'Uncle Harry' nothing, Dad," Rose said, shaking her head. "Scor and I are just friends."

It felt odd, after almost two weeks of pretending she was his girlfriend, to be dismissed as her friend, odder still to hear his nickname on her lips. He supposed the familiarity was good, that having things played down in front of her father was _very_ good, but it left him with somewhat of a hollow feeling inside.

"Right," Ron agreed, not taking his eyes off Scorpius. "How's school going, Rosie?"

Happily, Rose acquiesced and slipped into a long description of each of her classes. Scorpius did not hear a word of what she was saying, because Ron was staring straight at him throughout. Scorpius's mouth had dried out entirely, and his palms were beginning to sweat. Next time, he was definitely going to listen to Rose when she told him not to do something. Definitely.

"And where's Hugo?" asked Ron, when Rose had talked herself into silence.

Scorpius and Rose exchanged uneasy glances. "He had some friends to meet up with," Scorpius said smoothly, watching Ron sip from his cup before following suit. He hoped Ron hadn't slipped anything into it, but he would just have to take that risk.

"As I'm sure you do, too, Malfoy Junior," Ron suggested, leaning back in his seat, his fingers tapping the table right next to his wand.

Well, when he put it like that...

"_Dad_!" Rose exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "He's my friend - I invited him here."

Deciding Rose had been forced to lie to her father quite enough for one day, Scorpius also stood. "It's all right. I should meet up with Al now anyway."

Rose nodded, sinking back down into her chair. "All right. I'll meet you both in the Three Broomsticks in an hour?"

"Sounds good." Unable to resist the temptation of riling her father once more, he winked at her. "See you soon, my favourite ferret."

"'Ferret'?" Ron had been watching their exchange in silence, but chose that moment to break in. Scorpius winced, knowing he should have left that part out. Any goodwill he might have won through an early departure had just evaporated.

Rose shook her head. "Don't worry, Dad; it's just Scorpius's little joke. He thinks he's funny, you see."

An odd, almost amused twist pulled at the corners of Ron's mouth. "I do see. Did you know your father had a pet ferret when he was at school?"

Startled at being addressed, Scorpius shook his head.

"I think it was around our fourth year. Very pretty white ferret. You should ask him about it sometime. I'm sure he'd love to talk about it. Now, run along, Malfoy Junior, and leave us in peace."

Scorpius opened his mouth to say something, perhaps to remind Ron of his _actual name_, or to mount a defense of his heritage, and found no words came. He grabbed his bag, and departed.


	6. April (in October)

Thank you so much for the lovely reviews! They really made my week, and I appreciate the time taken. It's such a relief to know you feel the story is on the right track - and, of course, it's a great motivator.

(that said, my best friend is coming to stay for a week, and he's not especially keen on flying thousands of miles to watch me write fanfic... some people! I'm growing attached to the idea of a Halloween-themed chapter for the 31st, though, so will see what I can do)

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>"Do you want to tell me what's going on, Rosie?" Ron asked quietly, after Scorpius had departed.<p>

Rose felt her traitorous cheeks heat up, and turned her attention to her drink. "There's nothing to tell," she answered. Truthfully, she wasn't sure what she'd hoped to achieve by the visit. The concept of introducing Scorpius to her father had terrified her initially, but then - well, she couldn't deny that she'd pictured them hunching over a new piece of merchandise. Ron advising how it worked, and Scorpius testing it out, and Rose looking on approvingly.

Of course - of _course_ it hadn't happened that way. Scorpius looked too much like his father, too much like a boy interested in Ron's little girl (even though she was hardly a little girl anymore). He'd been too keen to bolt at the first opportunity.

She sighed.

Ron got to his feet, touching the rose garland around her neck. "What's this?"

She had not exactly forgotten it was there, but she had made her peace with it. "Scorpius did it for me. I can't seem to break it."

Ron huffed out a soft laugh. "You remind me of your mother sometimes," he said, lifting the garland over her head. "There's more than one way to skin a cat, sweetheart."

The garland came off easily, so easily that she was embarrassed at not having thought of it herself. It hung from her father's fingertips, and she couldn't quite reconcile herself to leaving it here, already missing the slight weight around her neck. "I-"

Ron placed it in her hands, careful not to crush the petals. "Okay. Don't say anything else; I don't think my nerves can take it. You'll deal with it in your own way, I know that." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, squeezing her gently. "I trust you to know your own mind."

For the first time, her father's faith in her felt like an uncomfortable burden. He trusted her not to hang out with Scorpius, not to accept the gifts he offered (or to burn them if she did), not to like it when he kissed her cheek. Rose wasn't precisely sure if she _did_ like it, yet, but she didn't... not like it.

"I should go and find Hugo," she murmured, wincing as her father's arm went slack around her. Guilt settled like a rock in the bottom of her stomach, but she couldn't go back now. "He's only steering clear because of Scorpius. He doesn't know about our arrangement."

"About how you're only dating Malfoy Junior as a favour?" Ron said dryly. He pulled back, but Rose still couldn't look right at him. She fiddled with the straps of her bag instead. "I won't lie to him, Rosie. Not if he asks me something directly. I don't understand why you're helping some boy dupe his girlfriend, because nothing good can ever come of it, but I won't have it affecting our family."

Appropriately chastised, Rose wavered. The idea of spending an afternoon laughing and joking with her family was appealing - but she knew that it was just wishful thinking at this stage. Even if she did tell Hugo the truth this afternoon, he would be sulky at not having been told immediately. Hugo's sulks were legendary amongst the Weasleys. "I understand," she said instead, leaning forward to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Give my love to Mum."

* * *

><p>Rose wrapped herself up in her coat and scarf after leaving the shop - November was letting them know it was on its way. In this weather, the lights of the Three Broomsticks were even more inviting than they normally were.<p>

She pushed her way inside, aiming a light punch at Hugo's shoulder, since her brother was standing by the door. He jerked his head, and shoved past her. The brusque exit - she really did need to talk to him; Hugo was one of her favourite people in the world - suggested that Scorpius was somewhere in the pub.

It only took another minute before she saw him, and her stomach gave a funny jolt. He was in the corner, framed by a group of raucous seventh year Gryffindors (Rose had a horrible feeling her cousins were in the midst of them), and what looked like a half-troll. The half-troll was more than likely the reason for the nauseous feeling in her stomach, and _not_ Scorpius's ex-girlfriend, who was looking thoroughly charmed.

"He's a pig."

Rose didn't even need to turn to know that Roxanne had materialised by her side. She shrugged, trying not to let it look like it bothered her. It was the aim, wasn't it? To get them back together - the sooner the better. "They're just talking, Roxy."

"Just talking, my a- er, foot," Roxanne finished, smiling at their Potions teacher. "Hello, Professor Tomkins, fancy seeing you here." Waiting for the professor to pass, she hissed, "They've been at it for half an hour. She's been _giggling_." Roxanne said it in the tone that most people would reserve for heinous crimes.

"Horror of horrors," Rose said, raising her eyebrows at her cousin. "I hope you've alerted the church elders. What other misdeeds have been going on behind my back?"

A sour look crossed Roxanne's face. "Make fun of me all you like, Rosie, but I'm telling you, neither of them are up to any good. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I thought you didn't like Malfoy," Rose probed curiously. "What's prompted all this?"

"I don't," Roxanne replied flatly. "Dump him, Rosie. He's not good enough for you to wipe your arse on - whoa." She flung her arms out, preventing Lily from going any further. "Stop right there, madam. There are teachers in here, and your mum will have my head on a plate if I let you get another detention in front of me. Rosie's too, but there are fewer brains in her head than we thought, so mine will be the bigger prize."

Lily turned an innocent look on them both. "I don't know what you mean."

"Bollocks," Roxanne returned. "I know that look on your face, even if I don't know precisely what you were going to do to Malfoy and his lady friend. You looked like a cat about to pounce on a canary."

Rose grinned involuntarily, but another look at April had the expression fading. All right, maybe nobody had outlawed giggling, but she wished they would, and touching one's ex-boyfriend's arm whilst they were at it. Perhaps if she spoke to Madam Rosmerta; her father said he had always been a favourite of hers during his Hogwarts days.

No. This was the road to madness. She was Scorpius's friend, and she hadn't even been that much until two weeks ago. There wasn't anything else to it; she didn't _want_ there to be more to it. It was only that feigning intimacy had made her accustomed to his attention.

"I'm going to the bar," she announced, wrapping her hand around Lily's wrist so the other redhead followed suit. "Roxanne's right, you know."

"No, Roxanne's left," Lily said with a smirk, pointing out their departing cousin. At Rose's unimpressed look, she relented. "Okay, okay. I know. It would have been too obvious it was me that time. Next time, I'll make sure it can't be traced back to either of us."

Rose stared at Lily, horrified. "That's not what I meant!"

Lily giggled, and threw her arm around Rose's shoulder. "Two butterbeers, please!" she yelled to the barman. "My cousin's paying."

"I'll pay."

Rose glanced behind her, and stiffened when she realised the voice had come from April. Her fingers fumbled for her rose garland, tucked into a pocket of her bag.

"Ten butterbeers, please," Lily called out to the barman, without batting an eyelid.

"Three," April said firmly, passing over a handful of change. "Run along, Lily. I'm sure you have some other little friends to play with."

To Rose's utter astonishment, Lily positively beamed back at April. "You're so right, April!" she gushed. "Thank you so much for the butterbeer. I do hope you have a nice day and don't fall in any mud or anything."

No good could come of this.

"Your family get-togethers must be _exhausting_," April said with feeling, watching Lily head towards her brothers.

Sometimes they were, but there was no way Rose was going to admit this to April. Weasleys closed ranks, and the only outsider permitted was Teddy Lupin, who was practically a Weasley anyway. April clearly hadn't sought Rose out for the sole purpose of purchasing her butterbeer, and Rose felt a flutter of nerves in her stomach. "We're a close-knit bunch," she said evenly, sipping her butterbeer. It soothed her enough to keep her from wishing she'd ordered something stronger (even if she had, it was likely to get back to her father; she wasn't legal for another five months).

"It's hard not to notice," April said, sparing a look for James's table in the corner. All right, they were loud, but what was the harm in that? Fortunately - Rose's fingers were beginning to twitch in the direction of her wand - April dropped the subject. "I saw you looking at Scorpius and me. I just thought you should know that there isn't anything going on between us. We haven't spoken since the split."

It would be easier to hate April, but of course, Rose had no right, and no proper grounds. Unless April's invasion of her personal space counted as proper grounds. Rose looked at April's sincere face, and sighed inwardly. "I wasn't worried," she responded, leaning back against the bar to affect an air of nonchalance. Her elbow landed in a puddle of something. Too late to remove it now. "You can talk to him as much as you like; I know what you two had."

"Does he talk about me?" April asked, and then held up her hand to stop Rose before she could respond. "No. It was wrong of me to ask. I'm sorry. I hope you and I could try to be friends, though, Rose."

A coldness settled itself inside Rose, something another sip of butterbeer did nothing to abate. She could see herself, forced to sit there whilst April and Scorpius flirted relentlessly in front of her. "I would like that, too," she answered, because there was nothing else to be said. She should probably invest in a new set of textbooks; something to keep herself occupied in that eventuality.

"Great." April looked as though it _was_ great, like a current girlfriend making nice with an ex-girlfriend wasn't a strange and painful occurrence. The reality was stranger, but April wasn't to know that.

Rose shifted her feet, and then decided that she didn't care if April thought she was rude. It would serve to decrease the odds of April seeking her out again, and that could only be a good thing. She nodded to April, and turned in the direction of Scorpius and her cousins.

To cap her Hogsmeade visit off, Lily was sitting beside Scorpius.

"All right, what have you done to him?" Rose sighed, taking the third seat. She examined her elbow, which was wet and sticky from whatever it had landed in at the bar. If only she could perform magic outside school; Grace was an expert in these situations from a general lack of awareness of her surroundings.

Lily turned wide eyes on Rose, an expression Rose had seen far too many times before. "Oh, Rose, we were just getting to know each other. If my favourite cousin is going to date somebody, of course I want to get to know him. You should eat at the Slytherin table with me sometimes." She pinched Rose's cheek; Rose batted her arm away too late. "Don't want you getting all boring with those Ravenclaws. Not that Rose is boring!"

"This is all very nice, Lily, but maybe you could give Rose and I some time to ourselves?" Scorpius drawled, stretching his fingers across the table to twine them briefly with Rose's.

Obediently - what was going on with Lily today? - Lily shot out of her seat, murmuring, "You're welcome," in Rose's ear before hurling herself at James.

"This has been the strangest day," Scorpius muttered in an undertone, his eyes still on the diminutive redhead. "Apparently, it's okay for me to like the Falmouth Falcons, I mean, because you actually say you don't like them, and you prefer the Holyhead Harpies, or the Chudley Cannons because your ridiculous father - Lily's words and not mine - corrupted you from birth, but Lily's sure you could be persuaded to like the Falcons if I like the Falcons."

"Good to know," Rose said, her mouth twisting into a smile. That vanished as Scorpius brought up the subject of April, and how surprised he'd been when she approached him, but wasn't that great? Wasn't it fantastic that the plan was working?

It was, she supposed, and she said as much, but left the inn a few minutes later with the excuse of a headache. Could she join her dad and Hugo? They were probably still chatting away. She suspected her face might betray too much that she wasn't ready to admit at the moment. Her heart heavy, she set off back to Hogwarts.

Footsteps sounded behind her. Praying they weren't for her, Rose continued on until she was jolted by a pair of hands landing on her shoulders.

"Now where are you off to, my speedy skunk?" Scorpius asked, draping an arm around her.

She tensed, tempted to shrug him off, but let his arm remain for the moment. His stride was longer than hers, but she matched it, accustomed to walking with her father. She wasn't sure when the boys in her year had sprouted up, and hoped Hugo would remain shorter than her at least a little while longer.

"I thought you were sticking with the Mustelidae family. Don't tell me you exhausted those already." She was rather proud of herself for knowing this, since animals had never been her strong point, but she'd made a point of looking it up previously, so she knew what to expect from him.

"I was trying, but the temptation to refer to you as a skunk overpowered me. Much as, you might imagine, a skunk's stench might be overpowering. I am not, of course, intending to apply any 's' words other than 'speedy' to yourself."

"And 'skunk'," Rose reminded him. "Do sit with us at dinner later. I've got a new potion I want to test out, and your pumpkin juice would be perfect for it."

"You've made your point," Scorpius said hastily. He was probably remembering the time when it wasn't safe to drink juice in the castle without developing boils or fur on your face. Everyone had, of course, blamed James and Freddie, but they'd never owned up to it. "Now, why are you haring off - you see? Hares? Completely inoffensive. Is it because your father likes me better? I think I made quite the impression."

In spite of herself, Rose smiled, turning her face towards the Shrieking Shack so Scorpius wouldn't see it. Once she was sure she wouldn't giggle - he didn't deserve it, not for running out on her - she answered, "Only the impression of your outline in his shop door. You might have opened it before bolting."

"Sure, sure, and give your father time to take my wand measurements and fingerprints," Scorpius scoffed, and then he paused. "You aren't angry, are you? I thought you'd want time alone with your father, without me being a jerk. You didn't really want me along anyway."

Of course, after that, she couldn't hold onto her anger (and privately, that fact annoyed her). "I was just teasing you," she said awkwardly, and then, because she couldn't bear for them to continue walking pondering on how flat her joke had fallen, she relied on the time-honoured tradition of discussing the weather. "It's such a lovely autumn day. Crisp."

Scorpius's silence suggested the new conversation topic wasn't taking. "I liked him, you know. Your dad. Even though he looked like he wanted to rip my throat out."

"Oh, he wouldn't do that," Rose reassured him. "He's far too handy with a wand for that." She ducked free of his attempt to muss her hair (handily freeing herself of his arm in the process), and laughed. "He's my favourite - I mean, I love both my parents equally, but I tend to get along better with my dad. It works for us, because Hugo gets along better with our mum."

Scorpius caught her hand, which she had been waving around whilst talking, and laced his fingers through hers. She was discomfited by it; she supposed he was accustomed to walking like this with April. "Your fingers are _freezing_. Haven't you heard of gloves? Or Warming Charms?"

Rose shrugged, not having noticed until that point. She thought better of pointing out that any Warming Charm she could have laid in the castle would have expired long ago. "Cold hands, warm heart."

"Cold hands, no gloves, cold October day," Scorpius returned. They walked a little further in silence, and could finally see the castle approaching. "I suppose I get along better with my mother than my father. She was all things to me growing up - both mother and playmate. It's what happens when you're an only child. Dad's great, though, don't get me wrong."

Since Rose had heard many stories to contradict this (mostly from her father - did you know Draco Malfoy had had to buy his way onto the Quidditch team? - and tempered occasionally by her mother, who told Rose that her father hadn't made it onto the Quidditch team until his fifth year, when Aunt Angelina had been Captain), she chose to pursue a new topic of conversation. It was likely that everybody but the first and second years would still be at Hogsmeade for another hour at least. "What do you want to do now?"

"I think I'm improved you a great deal, you know," Scorpius said smugly. "Time was, you wouldn't have thought twice about going anywhere but the library."

"Only because we got banned. That's hardly an improvement; it's wreaking havoc on my schoolwork."

Scorpius snorted, gripping her hand more firmly as she skidded on a patch of wet leaves. "Havoc? We study all the time, Rose. Even I'm starting to get straight Os. It's embarrassing."

She ran a hand through her hair, trying to flatten it as they re-entered the castle. When had he started calling her Rose in private? Maybe it was a conscious effort after her Malfoy slip earlier that day - over which, really, she thought Grace had overreacted. It was probably well past time to start calling him Scorpius all the time, anyway. Even after he and April reunited, maybe she and Scorpius could still be friends.

Point one for Albus; result achieved. She had to start giving him more credit.


End file.
